Overview:
This is the story of Miko, a shrine maiden, who can’t exactly see spirits even though her parents are both very good at banishing spirits. However, one day, when responding to a request from a friend, she attempts to banish Kagura, a demon who feeds off women, and she seals his powers, kind of.
Review:
Okay, I’m going to straight out point out that this isn’t my usual kind of thing. However, I do enjoy reading supernatural romance in novels and this particular story was recommended to me so given I’ve been trying manga I decided to give it a go. The result wasn’t bad. This is a perfectly readable story, however I wasn’t surprised to learn it wasn’t originally intended to be an ongoing story. It definitely feels wrapped up fairly early on and then they throw in yet more of the same to keep the story going.
There’s not a lot really to this story. Miko is dedicated but pretty clueless when it comes down to it and Kagura is a demon. Once his powers are sealed he becomes targeted by other demons so he ends up working with Miko, enhancing her powers at times, in order to survive. He also enters her dreams to seduce her and generally mess with her. By the end of the book they are kind of a couple but to be honest Miko is still pretty clueless and Kagura is having things go his way far too easily.
I don’t dislike Kagura as a character. He could actually be quite interesting. My issue is more with Miko who I find pretty bland as a protagonist and just a little bit too much of a doormat. Even when Kagura is sealed and shrunk (and adorable I might point out), she is so easily manipulated by him.
As for the rest of the story, there are some great moments if you happen to really like supernatural stories involving demons and the like. While mostly they consist of demon or demons show up because they’ve heard Kagura has been weakened, Miko somehow gets entangled and over her head, Kagura says something scathing and then either gives Miko some power or she unseals him so he can deal with the situation. Still, using Kagura as a key chain attached to her bag in his tiny form, the parents making him a new outfit complete with protective charm, and even the snake demon that turns out to be a fox in disguise are all interesting in their own way even if the approach remains pretty formulaic.
Personally, I don’t think I’ll continue onto volume 2, but I can certainly see the appeal of this series and enjoyed this first book well enough. That said, I think I’ll leave Kagura and Miko to their dreams and look for something else to read.
Thanks for reading.
Karandi James
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